Accessibility options on Freeview

Broadcasters work with organisations such as Able NZ to make programmes you find on Freeview as accessible as possible for all New Zealanders. This means they provide Audio Descriptions as well as Captions for selected programmes.

Audio Descriptions

Audio Descriptions is designed so blind or visually-impaired individuals can access TV. It consists of verbal accounts of what’s happening onscreen in between spoken dialogue.

Look for the AD icon in your Freeview TV Guide to see which programmes the broadcasters have arranged Audio Descriptions for.

You can turn AD on/off using your remote: in your device Menu, by changing the preferred Language of your TV or box to “Italian”. Some TVs or boxes have an Audio Description option in the Menu as well; please select that if it’s available. Check the user manual for your TV or box for device-specific instructions.

Captions

Captions provide transcripts of the dialogue as well as music and other sound effects, such as laughter.

Look for the icon in your Freeview TV Guide to see which programmes the broadcasters have arranged Captions for.

You can turn Captioning on/off by pressing the SUB, SUBT, STTL or TTX button on your remote. Check the user manual for your TV or box for device-specific instructions.